The gundark wandered into her sights, Ainsley felt her breathing slow, felt cold durasteel against her cheek and the wet ground against her body. Akaavi was beside her silent, two other mandolorians in their particular party crouching silent so as not to startle the beast. She breathed in, “Akaavi” she whispered. Akaavi didn’t answer, “psssst Akaavi!” She whispered again.

“Ainsley the shot is perfect, take it! What’s the matter?” Akaavi whispered back, serious and confused.

“Is that cute Mando with the black hair still checking out my ***?” Ainsley asked calmly, keeping the animal in her sights, with both her scope and the cyber enhancement on her left eye.

“What?” Akaavi asked in disbelief.

“Answer the question woman, is he?” the gundark paused to sniff the air, suspicious.

The zabrak woman looked over her shoulder to spy their hunting mates. Sure enough the rather handsome dark haired youth, with some disconcerting green eyes, was admiring Ainsleys rather well rounded and well formed posterior.

“Yes” Akaavi hissed

“Still got it” Ainsley whispered to herself, she squeezed the trigger, felt the recoil rock against her shoulder, the gundark dropped with the well placed blaster shot, a clean kill right between the eyes.

“OYA” the three Mando’s said in unison, Akaavi slapped Ainsley’s shoulder in congratulations, and Ainsley, ever the flirt, was sure to get up slowly, taking special care to accent the item of admiration for that cute kid, he reminded her of Corso when they had first met.

Ainsley was having a blast, they had been on Dxun now for 6 days, this was her second kill, Mandolorians really did know how to have a good time, Ainsley would be leaving the following day, thinking she might pay a visit to Risha and her latest Dubrillion prince, on her way back home. The two Mando youths moved to bag the kill, Ainsley held dreamy green eyes gaze as he walked by, he was all machismo and puffing, like a proud rooster, he tripped on a root as he looked back at her, his friend laughing at him. Ainsley turned towards the speeders smiling to herself. “Yep, still got it.” She heard Akaavi chuckle.

The two women reached the main hunting camp and made their way to their shared tent to clean off the mud and sweat from the day. When she got there she noticed her holo was blinking with a new message. Without a second thought she placed it on the table and hit play, expecting Corso, Aaron and Cohen to have left her a sweet little message. This vacation was exactly what she needed, big guns, good sport, sexy men, and no jealous husband so she could flirt and ogle in peace. Still she missed them, especially her boys. To her surprise a Twilek showed up on instead.

“Captain Ainsley Isiz, my name is Vette, and I am an old friend of one of your former crew members, Risha.” Vette, vette, The little slave girl Risha had told her about, the one her father had freed back when she was little, Ainsley vaguely remembered the story, but remembered Risha saying they had been close, she also remembered Risha saying the girl was probably dead.

“The job my collegue and I would like to offer you has a large sum of credits attached to it, and is also a mission of mercy. For more details please call this secured holo frequency.”

The message ended, leaving Ainsley wondering, she hadn’t taken a job since she had given birth to Aaron almost 4 years ago, and she eventually stopped getting offers all together, most people assuming she had retired from the smuggling business. In part they were right. The mission of mercy part had peaked her curiosity.

“Are you going to call her back?” Akaavi inquired, knowing how long it had been since Ainsley had done anything since bearing those children of hers.

“No harm in hearing her out right?”Ainsley punched in the frequency she had been given.

It wasn’t Vette on the other line, but a man wearing an imperial uniform. “Captain Isiz, I see you received Vette’s message, I am Captain Quinn, and I am the one looking to hire you for your rather impressive services.” Ainsley was immediately on guard, she had more the a few bounties on her head in the Empire, and she wasn’t about to let them collect on them now.

“Alright Captain Quinn what’s your angle, Vette said it was a mercy mission? You looking to defect or something? “She asked

“No, I need you to smuggle a child out of Imperial space.” He answered curtly “This child would otherwise be sold into slavery or killed otherwise. “

“Geeze what did this kid do?” Ainsley asked, her poor heart already going out, she was such a sucker when kids were involved.

“She was born without the force.” The Imperial answered plainly, to the point.

Ainsley was surprised, she had heard of smuggling force sensitives out of the Empire, from families not wanting their kids sent to the sith academy. She had helped run a job like that back on Balmorra. She had never heard of a “normal” needing to be taken out to avoid the Sith and their craziness before.

“I am prepared to pay you 200,000 credits, 20% now and the rest once she is safely in republic space. “

That was a lot of credits.

“Where’s the pick up?”

“Drumund Kaas”

Ainsley let out a low whistle, she hadn’t done a Kaas run since before her gun run to Ord Mantell.

“I have already prepared the proper credentials that will allow you to land in the spaceport, your coloured history will not be known to the customs agents.” Quinn continued.

“My bounties are worth a lot more than 200,000 credits, how do I know this isn’t a trap?” Ainsley challenged back.

“Because the child in question is my child. I have no desire to her harmed in anyway, you are the best smuggler in republic space, committing more than a dozen affronts to the Empire and we have yet to catch you. She would be in safe hands.” Ainsley heard emotion in his voice for the first time, she heard sincerity there. She thought of her own children, of the things she would do if they were threatened. She had been burned by the Empire before, badly, and it was a very real possibility that she could be walking into a trap, he gut told her otherwise. She prayed to the force and for the sake of her children that her gut was right.

“Send me those credentials and that 20%, I can be in Drumund Kaas in 2 days” Ainsley gave her answer.

Elliah made her way to Master Shan’s chambers. The two younglings had been found, in the gnarls of all places, this was the third time they had run off. They were running out of ideas. She walked into the spacious room, caught eyes with the orders grand master, gave her a respectful bow, then her eyes landed on the two troublesome younglings. They were both skinny little things, both girls, and both could be uncommonly mean to anyone else who attempted friendship with them. The older of the two was not a common sight on Tython, a Rattataki, already fully tattooed when she had arrived to the Order, large white grey eyes, that loved to roll whenever she was chastised, Rateah. The second, younger, was a Miraluka, had been with the order since birth. Avacynne had a shock of honey blonde hair, pretty heart shaped lips, and loved trying to adorn her simple eye veil with beads and ribbons, she was quite vain. Elliah had often wondered if this was her child, and that it was her test to quiet the anger and vanity in her daughter. Regardless they were her responsibility, and for the third time she had been worried sick over them.

“Girls, to my meditation room, now” Elliah ordered the girls in a stern voice, Rateah rolled her eyes, and Avacynne curled those pretty heart shaped lips. When they arrived she sat each girl on opposite sides of the room.

“Five hours” was all Elliah said.

“FIVE HOURS...” cried Rateah

“But Master Elliah that’s not f…” Avacynne started

Elliah held up her hand and and turned to Avacynne, “Fair? Avacynne, this is the third time the two of you have run away, there are still flesh raiders in the gnarls, was it fair to the knight who now has a blaster wound looking for you? Five hours of meditation, think on what you have done, meditate on the force, quiet you heart, young one, life isn’t fair, as a jedi you will face uneven odd, and injustice, the galaxy does not understand the word fair.” Elliah lectured quietly, hoping her words would reach her this time.

“I hate the force!” Avacynne pronounced grumpily, pouting as she crossed her legs under her getting into position for meditation.

Elliah stood up and left the girls alone with their thoughts, she waved a young knight over to her and assigned him to the door, lest the girls attempt to run a fourth time.

The two girls managed their silence for ten minutes before Rateah got up and went to sit beside her friend.

“We need to get off this planet” Teah announced again. “they can’t keep us forever, if we don’t want to be jedi, they can’t make us”

“You heard what master Satele said, we have to wait until we’re at least 17 before they can let us go” Avacynne replied, crestfallen.

“Piss on Master Satele, and piss on Master Elliah, and piss on the jedi, you wait sister, when the next resupply shuttle gets here, we’ll be on it when it leaves. We’ll escape and they won’t be able to stop us!” Rateah hugged her friend, she was her sister, they were different species, but she had never loved someone so fiercely.

“Together forever remember!”

“Together forever!” Avacynne hugged her back. She hated it here. The moment she found out her parents had been jedi and had chosen to give her up she wanted to leave. She hated them, all of them, so she clung to her adopted sister, her best friend. She had a family despite her parents not wanting her, her eye veil got wet as she started to cry. “I love you Teah!”

Quinn cradled Mitka, now three days old, he held her bottle up and she gulped the formula down greedily, dribbles running down her bright red chin, her large yellow eyes stared up intently at him. Malavai cooed quietly at her, exclaiming how big she had gotten, and how good a girl she was for eating all of her breakfast. He told her how proud he was of her for being so good for aunty Vette. Vette yawned, good, she was up at least 4 times a night with the rug rat, and she had savored every moment. Captain Isiz was due today, Quinn had noted the fabricated com signal entering Imperial space yesterday and had tracked her since.

Quinn and Vette where in a small cramped flat on the out skirts of Kaas city, in the alien sector, barely patrolled or looked at by law enforcement, except when hunting for an appropriate scapegoat for some crime or another. It had devolved into a veritable ghetto, the flat itself was garishly decorated Quinn noted, all purples and greens, but it was Vettes home, and it was one of the safest places to hide Mitka while they waited to smuggle her away from danger. Quinn had visited daily, was there to rock her to sleep every night, trying to commit her every feature to memory. He took countless holo images but deleted them as soon as they were taken, the risk of keeping one too great. Vette had never seen Quinn, who was so typically stoic, smile so much then he did in the past three days, nor had she ever seen him so sad.

Mitka finished the last of her bottle, Quinn had dosed it with enough sedative to ensure Mitka would not wake when they reached the space port. Not for the first time did he swallow a lump forming in his throat. Vette had packed the small, soft animal carrier with a familiar blanket, and Quinn tucked a letter, hand written, into the folds, and he placed the sleeping babe into the bag. Vette checked her pistols and handed Quinn his, they nodded to each other, grabbed the bag and headed for the space port.

The holo blipped with an incoming call, Ainsley appeared, “Captain Quinn, your shipment of Orokeets is here, just waiting to settle up and we’ll be out of your hair.”

Those damnable birds where all the rage with the Kaas city nobility, it was rare to see a highborn lady without one of the squawking, preening birds, the two creatures so alike he mused, he was thankful for the near constant rain lest the streets be stained white.

He strode into the space port, flashed his ident chip and was welcomed with crisp salutes and no questions, advantages to being married to one of the most powerful sith in the Empire. Vette followed close behind. A young officer saluted him at the hangar doors, handing him a data pad.

“All credentials check out sir, you didn’t have to come, we could have had the birds delivered to your estate.”

“Ensign, these birds are a personal gift for my wife, I would inspect the goods before accepting them, dismissed.”Quinn replied, signing his name at the bottom of the datapad.

“Yeah, and one of them’s mine!” added Vette

Quinn passed his hands over the security console when the ensign left, shutting off the security cameras. He and Vette entered, with a nod Vette fell back and began a perimeter sweep.

Standing by her large freighter stood the Captain Isiz, hands on hips, long leather coat only partially concealing the two vintage pistols, the gleaming durasteel glinting in the light. Quinn recalled her dossier, 4 bounties on her head, three for smuggling, two from the Hutt Cartel, one from the Exchange and one bounty for privateering from Imperial High Command. She was also a champion gunslinger, he read the reports of soldiers who had fought against her in the battle for Corellia, she had almost single handedly taken down the Voidwolf and turned his fleet of pirates against the Empire. It had been a devastating loss. She was an opponent to be respected.

A large Zabrak woman carried out a cage with two Orokeet chicks.

“Well Captain, as promised.” She nodded to the birds, then handed the Zabrak a datapad.

Quinn transferred the remaining credits, then place the bag on the floor gently, unzipping it, and lifted his sleeping daughter, cradling her protectively.

Quinn started listing off all the necessities he had packed for her, he looked at the cage, as if reading his mind Ainsley put his worry to rest.

“Don’t you worry, I have my oldest sons old crib in there, she’ll be safe and comfortable.”

The Zabrak collected the bag that they had brought Mitka in and took it into the ship.

Vette circled, now on one of the high platforms, scanning for anything out of the ordinary, not much escaped her keen eyes. Then she saw it, a form, a shadow, she drew her pistols, crept closer, it was above her, all dark, blending easily with the pipes, wires, and beams of the hangar bay roof. She followed the form, and noticed the long graceful edge of a sniper rifle, Vette shot the form, in the knee.

“Quinn we’ve got someone up here”

The assassin fell hard onto the platform floor, grunting.

Quinn pulled his pistol and aimed it at Ainsley, Mitka still in his arms.

Ainsley pulled her pistols, aimed them both at Quinn.

“I think we might have ourselves a problem here Captain Quinn.” Ainsley said, a hard edge in her eyes.

The statements and opinions expressed on these websites are solely those of their respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the views, nor are they endorsed by Bioware, LucasArts, and its licensors do not guarantee the accuracy of, and are in no way responsible for any content on these websites.

The statements and opinions expressed on these websites are solely those of their respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the views, nor are they endorsed by Bioware, LucasArts, and its licensors do not guarantee the accuracy of, and are in no way responsible for any content on these websites.